“Out of This World,” the current show by Ringling (led by its creative director, Amy Tinkham), is a reminder that nothing on a screen can replicate the wonder and urgency of the live circus. Keeping up with the times, this uneven production has some video and some projections, backing up some nonsense story about an evil intergalactic queen, a magic telescope, but these forgettable elements are secondary, mere interruptions to the real matter at hand：the act.
The highlights include motorcyclists (the Torres Family) zipping around inside a small metal globe, veering inches away from one another, and an incredibly daring group of acrobats performing feats standing on top of horses racing in circles at up to 25 miles per hour. Every couple of minutes, a flood of ice skaters or animals pours across the stage, setting up the next death-defying number.
There are some tepid efforts as well, like men on unicycles playing basketball, a few too many flubs like an acrobat falling into the net or a botched juggle. And any time the ringmaster (Johnathan Lee Iverson) sings a pop song, the show evokes a community theater production of “Starlight Express.” As is the case with most contemporary circuses, the comedy lacks any real wit or spontaneity, resorting to lame reference to “Jaws” and the song “Ice Ice Baby.”
What really distinguishes Ringling Brothers are the animal acts. They have long been the bread and butter of this circus - one of its most classic posters promises “the world's most terrifying living creature.” And in this show, they were out in force：llamas, hopping dogs a donkey, lions and tigers, a kangaroo and a lumbering pig.
This menagerie has inspired furious protests, including activists outside this show holding photos of tigers that read：“Whipped for your entertainment.” For those who want their circuses cage-free, Cirque du Soleil shows that you can offer crowd-pleasing spectacle without lions and tigers and pigs.
In response to the criticism, Ringling stopped using elephants last year, sidelining their most famous stars. (The word “jumbo” derives from the African elephant P.T.Barnum brought to America and showcased in his circus.) Perhaps it's for the best. The world moves on, even when a link to the past is broken.
When I took my young daughter to see Ringling a few years ago, just as my parents had done with me, it was the elephant that captivated her the most. On the way out, I bought a doll of one for her, with the red sign promoting “Greatest Show on Earth” over its trunk. That stuffed toy sat near her bed for years, long after she had lost interest in dolls. When I threw it out to make room for less childish things, I didn't expect how furious she would get with me. She says she still misses it.
